Cub Tracks raises the steaks

You’re not going to be able to tell me I didn’t have my thumb on the zeitgeist yesterday. The hot rails that the meatball takes travel on were way obvious, and still are. And I’m going to give myself credit for seeing the pasta pot boiling, because someone’s got to.

This is my third offseason at the wheel of the good ship Cub Tracks, and I’m gonna make it a smooth voyage. You’re welcome to come along for the ride.

I’m gonna take the bull by the horns, carve up the corpse of the 2018 baseball season, butcher the language, put the meat on ice, and examine the entrails. In other words, more of the same diet. If you have a beef with that, I’m sorry.

Next time, maybe we’ll go whole hog. As always * means autoplay on, or annoying ads, or both (directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome).

Cubs News and Notes:

“It sucks,” third baseman Kris Bryant said. “I’ve been fortunate to not be eliminated this early.

”This is the best time for this organization. The fans have suffered for a long time. I think it’s important for us to be proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish. We didn’t accomplish what we wanted this year, but there’s still a lot to be proud of where the Chicago Cubs have come from.” — Jesse Rogers.

• Michael Cerami (Bleacher Nation): Theo Epstein end-of-season press conference: Everything – dude touches on *EVERYTHING*. “...if you want to watch, the video is embedded at the bottom.”
• Or you can just watch the video: [VIDEO].
• Craig Calcaterra (NBC Sports*): Joe Maddon will return as Cubs manager for 2019. “Maddon’s contract is not being extended at this time...”
• Doug Glanville (NBC Sports Chicago*): What was, what could have been, and what 2018 says about the Cubs franchise. “The “C” on their uniform is a bullseye now.”
• Tyler Kepner (The New York Times* {$}): For the Cubs, the playoffs aren’t good enough anymore. “We had a chance to win the division and we didn’t,” Anthony Rizzo said.
• Patrick Mooney (The Athletic {$}): Change is coming to a Cubs team that failed to live up to its own great expectations. “...our mindset is World Series or no,” said Jason Heyward.
• Zack Moser (Wrigleyville-Baseball Prospectus): The Cubs lost the division (and the wild card), pt. 3: outfield and more. “...probably the most contentious causes for the Cubs’ failures...” Pt. 1, Pt. 2.
• Mark Gonzales (Chicago Tribune* {$}): After late collapse, Theo Epstein says Cubs will shift emphasis from evaluating talent to analyzing production. “...it was more than just an offense that went on a siesta after the All-Star break...”
• Matt Snyder (CBS Sports*): Three things the Cubs must address in the offseason, including making a run at Bryce Harper. “There’s a lot of talent here.”
• Mark Gonzales (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Cubs’ season ends with a shot and some hugs: ‘Sometimes you have to take the bad with the good. Now, we’re taking the bad.’ “Cubs players reflected on their sudden elimination from the postseason in which they failed to reach the National League Division Series for the first time in four years.”
• Jon Greenberg (The Athletic {$}): After five hours and 164 games, the Cubs had a lot of love and not enough runs. “It was a great year and I want people to know this team it was special,” Kyle Schwarber said.
• Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Disappointing season over, Cubs set about business of picking themselves up from dirt. “Sometimes you need to get your dick knocked in the dirt to appreciate it,” Jon Lester said after the game. “Maybe we needed that.”
• Jesse Rogers (ESPN*): Eliminated Cubs ready to ‘learn from losing’. “I like my chances every year if you come down to the last game of the year and you’re fighting for best record in the league,” said Lester.
• Carrie Muskat (MLB.com*): Lester pads postseason resume with 9-K gem. “The trouble is, he didn’t get any offensive support...”
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation): The Chili Davis question: Can the Cubs justify *not* making a change? “...the impact of a hitting coach is certainly non-zero...”
• Phil Thompson (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Cubs admit fatigue — but ‘not an excuse’ for playoff exit. “One word? Gritty. Gritty,” the Cubs manager said.
• Merritt Rohlfing (Beyond the Box Score): The Chicago Cubs’ (other) MVP. “Sometimes it takes an old timer to get a bunch of young stars to where they’re supposed to be.”
• Michael Clair (Cut Four*): Breaking down the ‘Hug Heard Round the World’. “Javier Baez once again achieved viral fame on Tuesday night.”
• Phil Rosenthal (Chicago Tribune* {$}): ESPN’s Alex Rodriguez lecturing Javier Baez on baserunning rules? That’s hilarious. “The rules are the rules,” Rodriguez said without a detectable trace of irony.
• Tony Andracki (NBC Sports Chicago*): What went wrong for the 2018 Cubs? Allow Javy Baez to explain... “We just kept going about, we gotta get it back, we gotta get together. But it never came to us.”
• Bill Baer (NBC Sports*): Terrance Gore’s 13th-inning at-bat doomed Cubs. “Go up with a wiffle ball bat.”
• Katy Strang (The Athletic {$}): Melisa Reidy details her experience with MLB’s investigative process, and why she wanted her voice to be heard. “It took a long time to build the courage,” she said.
• Lauren Comitor (The Athletic {$}): ‘Domestic violence is everyone’s problem’: Theo Epstein responds to MLB’s 40-game suspension of Addison Russell. “When asked about Russell’s future as a Cub, Epstein said, “I don’t know.””

Food for thought:

Thanks for playing along.